Senator Anne Ruston retains shadow aged care portfolio amid reshuffle

The Liberal leadership was looking more and more precarious of late. Last week, that tension reached its zenith when Angus Taylor defeated incumbent Sussan Ley 34-17 last Tuesday for the top spot. In a move that shows South Australian Senator Anne Ruston is making the right amount of noise and questioning on Labor, she’ll remain exactly where she’s been, overseeing her aged care portfolio and as Deputy Leader of the opposition in the Senate. The new opposition leader has publicly confirmed, and many analysts hedge, affirmed, Senator Ruston’s work in the Health and Aged Care Portfolio. Now a fixture in the Senate hearings, Senator Ruston has been delving deeper and honing sharper questions for the roll-out of the now widely criticised new home care aged care measures and programs. Surviving a leadership spill is no small thing, and analysts see Ruston as having done that with ease. Advocates and aged care experts say to look to her vocal positioning, in holding the current government to account on aged care changes, as likely securing her longevity even in the face of her support of Ley.

Longevity

Even in the face of her unquestionable support of Ley, Ruston has sailed through the spill and reshuffle to remain in the Shadow Cabinet, continue as Deputy Leader of the opposition in the Senate and retain the Health and Aged Care portfolio. Many see this as Taylor’s nod of approval to continue her established pattern of prolific questioning and focus to hold the current government to account.

Senator Ruston has been outspoken about her view of the current government’s handling of many aspects of the new act and its programs, particularly the Support at Home program. 

“Under the Albanese Labor Government, it has never been harder or more expensive to access essential health and aged care support”, she says.

Further yet, Ruston has been consistent in her assessment that aged care issues are not in a vacuum. She has been vocal that the damage of ill-planned schemes is not only exacerbating accessibility of services for seniors but the fallout to this cohort, and for all demographics of Australia, is immense. Particularly when it comes to strain and demand on the nation’s hospitals and residential aged care providers.

“Right now, thousands of older Australians are stranded in hospital beds across the country because they cannot access the support they need through our aged care system.”

Turning on a dime

Three weeks ago saw Ruston unequivocally indicate her support for Ley when pressed on the likelihood of a leadership challenge, “there’s obviously been speculation, but I quite frankly believe entirely that Sussan Ley has the support of the party room and that she will remain our leader into the future”.

“I think Sussan’s been doing an amazing job of being the leader in the toughest time that I can remember being in the parliament.”

And yet under a month later, with Taylor with the reins, not only has Ruston hung on to her aged care portfolio and leadership role in the Senate, she’s done so in the face of a concerted effort for the Liberals to rebrand with new blood.

Taylor has brought in a new cohort into his rebranded shadow ministry and reinstated the suspended Nationals back to the fold on the front bench.

Looking at Taylor’s recent comments, an indication of who, and most likely, why Ruston remains is due to what he’s prioritising.

“This is a team that blends proven experience with the next generation of Coalition talent,” Mr Taylor shares.

“The team is designed to do two key things — one, prosecute Labor’s failures … and two, ensure the Coalition changes Australia for the better.”

For those that have been viewing Ruston’s questioning of current staffers in the Department of Health, Ageing and Disability there have been dots to connect. Ruston has been delving deep into fault-lines of the new act, new schemes and their consequences for older Australians and providers across the country, leaving many facing the Senator’s questioning keenly ‘on notice’.

An even greater indication of Taylor’s satisfaction that Ruston is right where she should be, and doing work to ruffle the current government’s position, Ruston’s other portfolio of Sport has been passed along to allow for Ruston to commit the majority of her focus to pressing the government on aged care.

Digging deeper

As the fault-lines have been felt in individual homes, and for providers who have been unable to continue to service clients, those in the immediacy of the Support at Homes impacts have experienced frustration and confusion rise.

For providers who have been clear that they currently have the staff to meet greater numbers of clients, the frustration has built at hearing that seniors continue to wait months for home care package approval, oftentimes funded at only 60 per cent interim funding. Provider leadership are becoming increasingly vocal at the position they are placed in, working with clients with only 60 per cent funding, and hearing from the government they aren’t doing enough to provide care.

Senator Ruston has used her position in the Senate and position as Deputy Leader of the opposition to focus questioning on the ballooning wait times for home care packages, challenge as to why those numbers continue to grow and what can be done about it.

She shares, “ensuring our health and aged care systems deliver timely, affordable and quality support with real choice remains a key priority.”

Senator Kerrynne Liddle has been removed from being the Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians and will support Ruston in the role of Shadow Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care.

Pushing for change

Political analysts see Taylor acknowledging Ruston’s key impact in negotiating updates to the Aged Care Act 2024, particularly the element of grandfathering home support pricing schemes and ensuring lifetime care caps made it into the legislation.

Far from the multiple portfolios where party lines mean limited, if no bi-partisan collaboration at all, aged care has proven fertile ground for cross-party involvement against the current government. Independent Senator David Pocock, Greens Senator Penny Allman-Payne and Ruston were all heavily involved in pressuring the government’s hand to release 40,000 additional home care packages late 2025.

As the parliamentary year continues, Ruston is set to double down on focused analysis and sharp questioning towards the government and its staffers when it comes to the incumbent’s aged care agenda, the current rollout of schemes and the consequences to seniors and sector.